Developments in Machine Handling the 
Corn Crop 
TIE Department of Agriculture presents the pic¬ 
tures here shown to illustrate how corn cultiva¬ 
tion has developed from the plain homemade imple¬ 
ments up to the modern horse-power cultivator. The 
\ 
The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
at this rude contrivance, which is used for cultiva¬ 
tion, for marking out and sometimes for breaking 
up the soil. It represents an attempt to get £ w'.y 
from the hoe and put the burden on the family cow 
or steer. A step further along is seen at Fig 224 
in the double-shovel plow. This scoops through the 
soil, making a deep center furrow and throwing the 
839 
give one thorough hoeing. There is no question 
about the great value of horse power cultivators, 
and as the population grows and demands for food 
grow in proportion new tools will be produced to 
keep pace with culture. You will see at Fig. 227 
that the tractor is being used for corn cultivation. 
It has proved a rather hard problem to adapt the 
Hoeing Corn; the Favorite Method in Old Days, When Families Were 
Large and Man Power Was Cheap. Fig. 222 
white men who first came to this country found the 
Indians cultivating corn with clam and oyster shells 
fastened to sticks. That was the original hoe. It 
seems crude and simple today, but at that time the 
original American was able to produce needed 
“breadstuffs” and have some for export. The need 
of producing more bread as population has increased 
has compelled inventors and farmers to make use of 
The One-row Two-liorsc Cultivator; Probably the Most Generally Used Cora, 
Implement. Fig. 225 
light tractor to this work, but on some big farms we 
find an outfit like that shown in the picture working 
three rows at once. 
There is a great demand today for a “one-horse” 
tractor—that is. one hauling a single plow, and cost¬ 
ing about the same as a first-class big horse. With 
such an implement many farmers who live on rather 
limited acreage would be able to grow a number of 
soil up to each row, We have no space here for an 
argument over the merits of level or hill culture. 
We have heard a man say that he would shoot 
anyone who came into his cornfield with a plow, yet 
there have been cases on our own farm where plow¬ 
ing up to both rows paid better than level culture. 
Sometimes in a very wet season, on naturally damp 
soil, the corn rows are practically flooded. In such 
l in Many Parts of the 
The Three-horse Two-roto Cultivator, Frequently Seen in the Corn Belt. Fig. 226 
The “ Bull-tongue" or Single-shovel Plow; Stiu Us. 
South. Fig. 223 
gasoline and horse power to do the work once done 
by the clamshell. Only the other day we saw an 
Italian working with a heavy hoe to chop up and 
plant an acre of corn. 
Fig. 222 shows a squad of men working with hoes. 
Where man power is abundant hoeing will pay. For 
two centuries or more the New England farmers 
imitated the Indian with his clamshell—substituting 
cases plowing opens the soil, dries it and lets in 
the air and gives the crop a better chance. We 
have known cases where in a wet season it was 
impossible to keep the drills or hills free from weeds. 
They can often be checked or destroyed by plowing 
a furrow over them at just the right time. 
Most corn growers who prefer to be up-to-date 
believe in level culture and the use of all possible 
acres of corn. In New England and Eastern New 
York there are many poultrymen and fruit growers 
who have more or less sod land which at present 
is not worked to advantage. The past few years of 
war have convinced these men that in the future 
they must produce more of the grain needed for 
feeding. Their rough sod .land is well adapted for 
growing flint corn, and with a workable tractor of 
The Double-shovel Plow, Used for Hilling Corn. The One-horse Cultivator 
is Far Better. Fig. 22h 
The Motor Cultivator at Work in the Cornfield. Fig. 227 
steel hoes wijth various implements in shape. We 
have never found a tool to equal a hoe in the hands 
of a good man. In growing sweet corn we hire men 
by the day to hoe corn, and consider it a good in¬ 
vestment—but a man must know how to do it. Too 
many men use a hoe as they would an ax. 
Fig. 223 shows a single-shovel plow and an outfit 
often seen in the Middle South. Experts will laugh 
horse power to save hand work. This desire on 
their part has led to the development of horse culti¬ 
vators—three of them seen in the pictures. In our 
own case we should prefer to use the weeder or 
straight-tooth harrow in the corn shown at Fig. 225. 
This would do the work faster without injuring the 
corn. We should then follow with the horse culti¬ 
vator and if it were possible to obtain the labor 
about one-horse size they could grow enough corn 
to supply their flocks and herds. For the past 10 
years the development in corn-growing machinery 
has been along the needs of the big operators. Now 
we think there will come another development to 
answer the call of the poultrymen and smaller fruit 
growers who must produce more grain in order to 
carry on their business with fair prospect of profit. 
